Nelson Township, Michigan

Nelson Township, Michigan
Township
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Kent
Area
• Total	36.2 sq mi (93.8 km2)
• Land	36.0 sq mi (93.3 km2)
• Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2)
Elevation	906 ft (276 m)
Population  (2010)
• Total	4,764
• Density	131.6/sq mi (50.8/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
FIPS code	26-56920
GNIS feature ID	1626792
Website	http://www.nelsontownship.org/

Nelson Township is a civil township of Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,192 at the 2000 census.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 36.2 square miles (94 km²), of which, 36.0 square miles (93 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km²) of it (0.55%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 4,764 people, 1,427 households, and 1,117 families residing in the township. The population density was 116.4 per square mile (44.9/km²). There were 1,499 housing units at an average density of 41.6 per square mile (16.1/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 97.54% White, 0.36% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.60% from other races, and 0.93% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.67% of the population.

There were 1,427 households out of which 42.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.2% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.7% were non-families. 17.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.91 and the average family size was 3.28.

In the township the population was spread out with 31.8% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 102.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.3 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $50,521, and the median income for a family was $54,375. Males had a median income of $36,974 versus $25,897 for females. The per capita income for the township was $18,861. About 8.1% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.7% of those under age 18 and 13.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The Township of Nelson is run by a board of elected officials. As of November 2012, township officials are as follows: Supervisor: Tom Noreen Clerk: Laura Hoffman Treasurer: Katy Austin Deputy Treasurer: Brenda Arnold Trustees: Glen Armstrong, Maureen Mahoney These offices run until November 20, 2016.